Japanese print – Katsushika Hokusai – Hanami at Gotenyama – Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji Series – Shōwa Yūyūdō Edition

Ukiyo-e print, woodblock print. [Shōwa era reissue using traditional woodblock printing techniques]

Print type: scenes and landscapes: Fūkei-ga 風景画

🎨 Artist: Katsushika Hokusai 葛飾北斎, signed 前北斎為一筆 Saki no Hokusai Iitsu hitsu

Publication date: Shōwa period, circa 1965.

📜 Publisher: Yūyūdō 悠々洞出版
Editorial supervision: Yoshida Eiji 吉田暎二 (great expert of Japanese prints)
Engraver (Hori-shi): 伊藤 (Itō)
Printer (Suri-shi): 遠藤忠雅 (Endō Tadamasa)
Original publisher: Nishimuraya Yohachi 西村屋与八

📏 Format: 32 x 21.5 cm (ōban yoko-e) with margins

Series: 富嶽三十六景 (Fugaku Sanjūrokkei): Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji

Title: 東海道品川御殿山の不二 (Tōkaidō Shinagawa Gotenyama no Fuji)
View from Gotenyama in Shinagawa on the Tōkaidō road. No. 39 in the series

Subject:

This print is one of the most vibrant and refined compositions in the series, and yet it is one of 10 additional prints not initially planned! Hokusai depicts a hanami scene, an emblematic moment in Japanese culture where people contemplate cherry blossoms in spring.

On the heights of Gotenyama, groups of walkers, travelers, and city dwellers gather to enjoy the cherry blossoms in full bloom. The animated silhouettes, everyday gestures, and interactions give the scene an almost audible presence.

The composition is structured by the slender trunks of the cherry trees, whose blossoms are subtly rendered in karazuri (embossing), bringing a delicate relief perceptible in the light. The sky, meanwhile, is treated in bokashi, a controlled gradation that creates an atmospheric depth characteristic of ukiyo-e.

In the background, Shinagawa Bay opens calmly, while Mount Fuji appears, still and silent. This contrast between human activity and the timeless presence of Fuji constitutes one of the essential elements of the work.

Condition: Print in perfect condition, presented with mat. Fresh and balanced colors, very good print quality typical of Yūyūdō editions.

🦝 Our opinion:

This print by master Hokusai is simply sublime! One of the rare ones in the series depicting spring and especially Hanami under the cherry trees with a view of Fuji! It shows both sublime nature and a scene of daily life in Edo Japan, it makes you want to be there! This ukiyo-e perfectly represents the Japanese aesthetic of the ephemeral: Mono no aware.

A very beautiful Shōwa reissue by Yuyudo, in perfect condition, faithful to the spirit of the originals, enriched by serious editorial work supervised by Yoshida Eiji, a recognized specialist in ukiyo-e.